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ST. LOUIS — Brian McKenna, a broadcaster known for his no-holds-barred take on local sports and for championing philanthropic causes, died early Saturday crossing Hampton Avenue not far from his house in St. Louis Hills. He was 61.

McKenna was walking west, across a bend in the four-lane roadway between Nottingham and Murdoch avenues, when a car driving south struck him, according to St. Louis police. Paramedics pronounced McKenna dead just after 1 a.m.

The driver, who was uninjured, was cooperating with investigators, police said. An accident reconstruction team is investigating.

McKenna, a graduate of Lindbergh High School, was a fixture on St. Louis sports-talk radio for nearly two decades across multiple stations before leaving the airwaves several years ago.

“Brian had a lot of talent,� local radio personality Kevin Slaten said. “He was entertaining. He was fun.�

He used his platform to amplify fundraising efforts, with police and children especially dear to his heart.

“If you ask me, ‘What have you enjoyed most about this (radio run),’ sports doesn’t even come close to BackStoppers and all the other charities,� McKenna told the Post-Dispatch in 2016 when his time as a sportscaster were ending. “That’s my passion.�

McKenna’s career in a notoriously turbulent industry included personal highs and lows.

He made headlines in 2014 when he was working at KFNS (590 AM). It was a tumultuous period in which payrolls were missed, workers were abruptly dismissed and court judgments were rendered against the company.

“It’s run on a string,� McKenna, then the station’s morning-drive host, told the Post-Dispatch at the time. “Have I ever seen anything like this in basically 20 years in sports-talk radio? Absolutely not — not even close.�

KFNS and KXFN (1380 AM) were sister stations operating out of the same building in south St. Louis, and Nick Trupiano was broadcasting on KXFN the day the story was published. He was critical of those who spoke negatively about the company and also said on the air that McKenna had overstated a cancer diagnosis to gain sympathy. That angered McKenna, who came to the studios to confront Trupiano. The situation escalated, and McKenna was fired at the direction of Dan Marshall, who oversaw the stations.

A fistfight ensued between McKenna and Marshall.

 Marshall was taken a hospital and McKenna was briefly jailed, but never charged. 

"As with any case, the circuit attorney’s office conducted a robust review of the facts and circumstances into the alleged assault, including extensive interviews with people present at the station that day,� Susan Ryan, spokesperson for that office, said at the time. “Prosecutors determined there was not sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt which party initially instigated the altercation. Therefore, no charges were filed.�

McKenna later went to work for a building restoration company while also doing some radio work on the side. He also faced a series of health problems in subsequent years. An aggressive form of melanoma, a type of skin cancer, kept him sidelined for months. He underwent multiple surgeries. His face was partially paralyzed.

Post-Dispatch columnist Jeff Gordon worked with McKenna on WQQX (1490) in that period.

“No one should go through as many things as he did,� Gordon said Saturday. “He was an amazing and upbeat guy. Everyone will tell you the same thing: He had a heart of gold.�

And he never lost his sense of humor.

“As one of my buddies said, ‘Now I officially have a face for radio,’� McKenna told the Post-Dispatch after one of his surgeries. “For years, I was so sick of people calling me the ‘pretty boy’ on the air. So I think what my buddy said was the line of the year.�

McKenna still was undergoing cancer treatment, which impeded his ability to work. Five years ago, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, a parade of more than 500 cars snaked past his house to present him with a check to help with medical bills. The effort raised more than $150,000.

It was overwhelming to him, remembered Robin McKenna, one of his nieces, on Saturday. But the outpouring didn’t surprise anyone who knew him.

“Anything he could do to help others, he would,� she said.

McKenna grew up in south St. Louis County, the youngest — along with fraternal twin Kevin McKenna — of 10 children.

“Uncle Brian was the glue of the family,� said Robin McKenna.

She last saw him on Monday at the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dogtown. It was always the biggest family gathering of the year — the McKenna Christmas, she said.

In 2017, McKenna was named the Irish Person of the Year by the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the fraternal organization that sponsors the parade. The following year, he served as grand marshal.

“It’s a sad day for the Irish community in St. Louis,� said Mike Tevlo, with the Hibernians.

This year, McKenna donned a green shamrock-covered suit and tie at the parade. He texted a video of the festivities to his niece on Friday.

“He was the life of the party,� Robin McKenna said. “I just want people to know how much he was loved.�

For the past year, McKenna had produced a weekly “talk show� from his living room. His next-door neighbor, 86-year-old Barbara Goldson, was his co-host. “The Babs & Brian Show� was an antidote to the news, said McKenna’s longtime friend, Stephanie Bozich.

“That was something they looked forward to every Thursday,� said Bozich. “They talked about life in general.�

By Saturday afternoon, a chair placed on McKenna’s front lawn was filling up with flowers, notes and balloons.

On the sidewalk in front of his house, someone had written McKenna’s personal motto: Your vibe attracts your tribe.